Excellent perspective on Pats game

Greg Williams' defense has never had a problem tacking. I agree it's not good, but that doesn't mean it's time to worry extensively. When the emotion of a Monday night home game kicks in, I think we'll look good.

problem is we have a lot of new cast offs in the secondary. and hopefully more new blood (not necessarily cast off) on the way.

problem is we have a lot of new cast offs in the secondary. and hopefully more new blood (not necessarily cast off) on the way.

My biggest concern is in-fact secondary. There's no doubt that the injury to Springs has highlighted a dire need, one that hopefully should be addressed in the very near future. I hope SS comes back to full form, but I'm doubtful.

yeah by far, its the biggest concern right now, (thats why seeing Ladell "tradebait" Betts there on the sidelines is really starting to bother me).

my point was that while Williams defenses do traditionally tackle well, all these guys are new, and it may be a while before they become Williams tacklers (and hopefuly Williams cover men before that).

why'd we let go of Ryan Clark again?

clark wasn't all that great in coverage either. and he got b*tched twice on what happened to be two game losing plays (alstott and LT bowled over him).

griffin is the key. he may be the best player on the team... seems like every time he's out, our defense turns into total crap.

and again, i'm not worried, but i'm not buying that being on the wrong end of a 41-0 drubbing where the skins did nothing right is in any way a good thing (which it seems like a lot of people are trying to say). and i'm a bit tired of all the excuses. they should just say they didn't play well and they'll get it fixed. all this PR is just wasting time they should be spending on getting the team in order.

Ryan Clark?

The one that was stiff-armed to the ground by LT in the Chargers game?

I loved his effort but the guy was undersized and limited. AA will show his stuff soon enough.

This is a very good set of observations. I'm impressed.

I do however think they made a mistake coming into camp so late, especially after adding so many new pieces (and a new offensive system with only one coach brought in to teach it - saunders didn't bring his crew like GW did, he came solo (his son doesn't count)).

I think mis-using the preseason will in all likelyhood ensure a slow start on offense (like last year). I think a lot of people forgot we went from 3-0 to 5-6 before pulling it out. Our offense was beyond worthless for 13% of the season (1hour and 56 minutes (two weeks) of a 16 hour season) and we really weren't a good team until the end.

I also kinda wonder what's with bringing in all these new guys so late... I mean it's better than doing nothing, but we knew the skins needed kicking help and depth since the draft ended.

whatever. we have some easy games and if griffin et al are back by week 1, our D should give the offense some cushion to find itself again.

I just wish they blocked and tackled well enough that saunders didn't feel the need to give a 45 minute interview on how everything is going according to plan.

I do however think they made a mistake coming into camp so late, especially after adding so many new pieces (and a new offensive system with only one coach brought in to teach it - saunders didn't bring his crew like GW did, he came solo (his son doesn't count)).

Based on the one on one performances of the first team I happen to agree. Gibbs addressed this issue by saying it was a reward to the team for the great turnout for offseason workouts. Gibbs also implied this may change next season.

I think mis-using the preseason will in all likelyhood ensure a slow start on offense (like last year). I think a lot of people forgot we went from 3-0 to 5-6 before pulling it out. Our offense was beyond worthless for 13% of the season (1hour and 56 minutes (two weeks) of a 16 hour season) and we really weren't a good team until the end.
I tend to disagree with you based on the schedule. We win at home against the Vikings, may drop one to Dalls or JAX, but I think we'll gain some momentum early and our fate is decided on how well we can keep that going. It's a very tough schedule overall, and this season will be a true challenge.

I also kinda wonder what's with bringing in all these new guys so late... I mean it's better than doing nothing, but we knew the skins needed kicking help and depth since the draft ended.

whatever. we have some easy games and if griffin et al are back by week 1, our D should give the offense some cushion to find itself again.

I just wish they blocked and tackled well enough that saunders didn't feel the need to give a 45 minute interview on how everything is going according to plan.
Our defense is going to be top 5 again this year. I feel we've improved upon last year, but I agree I wish the preseason was more entertaining. The fact is, the preseason doesn't matter, and coaches (regardless if we know their motives or not) use it how they want to.

I think a big distinction to make is that where the team isn't performing, individuals players' performances need to be taken into the context of the situation. To me, all signs point to an overreaction by the fans, and truly a wait and see approach is best suited. It may not be fun, but it's all we got.

i'm leading the wait and see bandwagon ;) but i'm also annoyed by the excuses. it is what it is, and we'll figure out how much of a mistake their use of the offseason/pre-season was and how good all this hidden game planning is on opening day. if i had to bet though, it'd be on a lackluster offensive performance out of the gates right now.

We see the worse of both extremes :)